When I started my blog over four years ago, I relied a lot on Google and books to help me learn the ropes. I learned as I went along and I’ve continued to add books to my blogging books library. Listed below are some of my favorites.

Books To Help Improve Your Photography:

Plate to Pixel: One of the first blogging books I bought was Plate to Pixel. The author Helene Dujardin creates the most beautiful food photographs as demonstrated on her site Tartlette. In her book, Helene covers lighting, styling, camera settings, composition, editing and storage of photos. It’s absolutely a must-have if you’re looking to improve your photography.

Food Photography for Bloggers: Another great food photography reference written by food photographer and blogger Matt Armendariz. This book is clearly written, engaging, and will have you taking pictures like a pro in no time.

Books To Help You Develop Recipes:

If you’re writing a food blog, it’s best to know how to develop recipes (kinda what this is all about, you know?). These books will give you the building blocks you need as well as get the creative juices flowing.

The Flavor Bible: I know I’m a bit of a broken record when it comes to The Flavor Bible – I’ve written about it many times before. Turn the page to “pear” and you’ll find a list of things that will complement that juicy pear perfectly. See a perfect bunch of parsley at the store that you just can’t pass up? Turn to parsley in The Flavor Bible and you’ll be bursting with recipe ideas in no time at all.

Ratio: This book by Michael Ruhlman is unbelievably helpful when developing recipes. Want to make a vinaigrette? This book will tell you that it should be 3:1 – 3 parts oil to 3 parts vinegar. It’s up to you what kind of oil…what kind of vinegar…and what else you want to add in. Fresh herbs? Dijon? Honey? The possibilities are endless once you know the basic ratio of the recipe. Biscuit dough is 3:1:2—or 3 parts flour, 1 part fat, and 2 parts liquid. Then it’s up to you — Sweet? Savory? A little of both?

Professional Chef: This is a doozy of a book. It’s huge – textbook huge. But it has all your basics in it, all the tips, tricks and tools you need to be successful in the kitchen. It also has tons of great basic recipes in it that are perfect starting points if you’re stuck on the components of a particular recipe.

Books To Help You Build Your Business:

Food Blogging for Dummies: This book by Kelly Senyei has a little bit of everything. It has some great info on food photography but since it covers other topics, I put it under this category. It is perfect for beginners but also has plenty of great information for those of you who have been at this for awhile. If you need proof of Kelly’s expertise, just spend a couple minutes on her beautiful site Just a Taste. You’ll quickly see this is a lady who knows what she is talking about. If you want to know more about this book, I wrote a review of Food Blogging for Dummies shortly after it was published. (Also available as an ebook.)

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook: I’ve become a huge fan of the author of Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook, Gary Vaynerchuk. I listen to his entrepreneurship podcasts while I’m on the treadmill. This book gives you tips on how to be successful on each social media platform. One note about this book is that it was published in November 2013 and is on the topic of social media so some things have changed since this book was published. It still contains some good social media strategies and is a worthwhile read.

How to Monetize Your Food Blog:I’m a huge fan of Kiersten’s site Oh My Veggies – which she has grown into a successful business with a team of 9 employees (correct me if I’m wrong on that number, Kiersten!). Kiersten is generous enough to share the techniques she uses to monetize her blog. She covers ad networks, affiliates, sponsored content, freelancing, tracking your income, taxes and more. Some things are good to learn by trial and error, but when it comes to money and taxes, wouldn’t you rather get it right the first time? This ebook is a must-have.

What do you think of this list? Any books you have in your library that I missed?

LOOKING FOR MORE PERSONALIZED, ONE-ON-ONE ASSISTANCE WITH BUILDING YOUR BLOG? Make sure to check out my blogging consulting services. I still have available spaces for new clients! One of my packages includes a few of these books shipped right to your house!

wow, you have included SO many wonderful resources. I have some of these books, but now I see there are some I absolutely must have. Thank you for sharing such valuable information

Awesome list, thank you! I’m a big fan of The Flavor Bible too. It’s essential. There are also a number of Facebook Groups for food bloggers that are excellent for answering specific blogging questions.

I am always looking for ideas on how to improve. Thanks for the great list.

What a great list!

Hi there- I have just discovered your blog and it is totally amazing!! Love everything I have looked at! I also really enjoyed reading this post as well as the others in this series, such great and useful information for people like me trying to get started. Thank you so much!!

What a great list! A few of these I own and love and a couple I don’t have but just ordered. Thank you!

Thanks for posting this Rachel, like I said on your fb page, I’ve been doing this for about 5 years and still feel in the dark most of the time ;/
I’ve been doing it mostly for fun but am really at the point now where it is taking up enough time (I have 4 kids and work 3-4 days a week in surgery) that I feel if I’m not making a decent amount of money I really can’t justify it. If you have any more tips for monetizing I would really appreciate it!

I really loved your list. Great ideas to help people who are searching for the food books online and those who want to create and promote blog.

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About Rachel COoks

Hi, I'm Rachel! This site features a wide variety of recipes with one common thread: easy preparations. I love creating accessible and delicious food that will please the whole family. Hope you enjoy! (more about me...)

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